You can play the what-if game with every sports franchise in existence with wins and losses. However, when those same thoughts come about with the squad you follow and root for, that’s when it hurts.
And that boys and girls is where we are with the Indianapolis Colts.
A 6-6 football team after the 38-31 implosion against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And when you look at it, the Colts should be 9-3. The home game against the Tennessee Titans, Monday Night Football versus the Baltimore Ravens, and now the Bucs game should have all been dubs.
But here we are.
And away we go. There’s a lot of football left, as Frank Reich likes to say. That’s both promising and terrifying. Sure, the playoff push is still possible. But the track record with blowing games right now is abysmal.
Good thing we’ve got that 1-0 mentality. Yawn. Give me results.
1) It was more than just getting away from the run
Jonathan Taylor is the best player on this roster.
No ifs, ands, or buts. When you don’t give the ball to the best player and weapon you have in the manner that he should be receiving it, that’s a failure. Pure and simple.
Taylor got one little drop pass look in the 3rd quarter. It was a loss. That’s it.
No runs. I could care less if they were RPO’s. Against a dominant defense, the last thing that you ever give them is momentum and energy. In a heavyweight fight, you don’t dominate the first two rounds and then sit back in the next one. You get back out there and you knock the hell out of the guy. You make him beg the referee to stop.
That’s what the Colts were doing to Brady. They were about to hand him the first L against the Blue and White since 2009. But alas, here we are.
The Colts took their foot of the gas. Now they’re paying for it.
2) Ashton Dulin Absolutely Works His Tail Off
When you think about the grinders on this football team, Ashton Dulin comes to mind.
Dulin earns every single thing that comes to him. He puts in the work on special teams, doesn’t get many touches, but when called upon, he’s ultra reliable.
The monster grab from Carson Wentz on Sunday was a thing of beauty.
By the way, what ever happened to Mike Strachan?
The last time we heard any update on him, Reich said that in order for guys like him to get looks offensively, they need to chip in within other areas. And by the sound of it, Strachan wasn’t doing squat on special teams by how Reich sounded.
The rookie Strachan can learn a thing or two from how Dulin has gotten his big opportunity. While we think of it, Zach Pascal was the same way. Almost like the nothing given, everything earned mentality holds true in that locker room.
3) Brady Carved Colts Secondary on Thanksgiving Weekend
Rock Ya-Sin seems like a really nice guy and is clearly a hard worker.
But man, that was bad.
When you’re going against the GOAT, there is no time to be ordinary. It wasn’t just Rock either. Every single one of them struggled in that secondary.
That’s something really concerning too. The Colts are now past the back-to-back gauntlet of Josh Allen and Tom Brady. But look who’s still on the horizon. Mac Jones is playing like the rookie of the year, Kylar Murray is a cheat code if he’s healthy, and Derek Carr feels really sneaky.
It’s just a bit of uneasiness.
Like when you wake up on a Sunday after a big night out in college. You feel like you can handle the headache, but then it really hits you when you don’t see it coming. If the Colts defensive backfield isn’t up to prime in December, it’s big time trouble ahead.
